A comparison of acyltransferase activities in vitro with the distribution of fatty acids in lecithins and triglycerides in vivo.

The location and configuration of a double bond in a fatty acid influences the rate of its acyltransferase-catalyzed esterification to form lecithin and its distribution in vivo between the primary and secondary positions of triglycerides and lecithins.Saturated acids of shorter chain length are transferred at rates similar to the long chain unsaturated acids.The positional distributions of acids in the diglyceride units of liver triglycerides appear to be similar to that found in the lecithins.Acyltransferase activities measured in vitro have a considerable predictive value in terms of the ultimate distribution of fatty acids in glycerolipids in vivo.